SOURCE: 경찰, 김수현·故 김새론 교제설 허위 결론...'가세연' 김세의 대표 영장 신청
Police have requested an arrest warrant for Kim Se-ui, the CEO of Garosero Research Institute who is accused of defaming actor Kim Soohyun. The police investigation reportedly concluded that allegations claiming Kim Soohyun dated the late actress Kim Saeron while she was underage were false.
According to JoongAng Ilbo on the 21st, the arrest warrant request submitted by the Seoul Gangnam Police Station stated that Kim Se-ui spread false information about Kim Soohyun for financial motives, including YouTube revenue. Police reportedly specified that Kim Se-ui was well aware that Kim Soohyun never dated the late Kim Saeron while she was underage, yet he still distributed false information with the intention to damage Kim Soohyun's reputation.
The report also stated the police found that the messenger conversations that Kim Se-ui revealed in March last year as evidence of the relationship were completely fabricated. The police determined that after receiving 11 screenshots from the bereaved family showing conversations Kim Saeron had with an individual displayed as 'unknown' in 2016, Kim Se-ui edited and manipulated seven of them, including changing the individual's name to Kim Soohyun. The police pointed out that although Kim Se-ui clearly knew the identity of the actual conversation partner could not be confirmed, he uploaded the altered material to make it appear as though it was a genuine conversation between Kim Soohyun and Kim Saeron. Furthermore, the police also reportedly concluded that an audio recording of Kim Saeron released by Kim Se-ui side in May last year had been manipulated using AI technology.
Besides Kim Se-ui, investigators also reportedly booked the lawyer representing the bereaved family. The police believe the lawyer not only provided Kim Se-ui with materials connected to the alleged crime and spread false information, but also systematically and deliberately committed the crime by amplifying and reproducing the claims. Regarding this, Go Sangrok, the legal representative for Kim Soohyun, stated on social media on the 20th that Kim Soohyun's side had not sued the bereaved family's lawyer and that it was the investigators themselves who identified possible accomplice involvement before changing the lawyer's status into a suspect. He also noted that it is extremely unusual for a suspect's lawyer to be recognized as a co-conspirator and later turned into a suspect.
The police reportedly stated in the warrant that the incident caused serious damage to Kim Soohyun's reputation, economic activities, and professional career. They also added that Kim Soohyun is currently undergoing psychiatric treatment. Therefore, if the suspect continues to distribute false information, it could result in severe and irreversible harm.
Meanwhile, Kim Se-ui denied the prosecution's request for an arrest warrant, claiming it was political plot to obstruct his journalistic activities. During a live broadcast the previous day, he argued that he had originally planned to travel to Hanoi, Vietnam, to continue investigating an alleged sexual crime case involving a high-profile politician, and claimed the sudden warrant request was specifically filed to interfere with his reporting.
